Corporate Social Responsibility, or “CSR”, is more than a philosophy or popular “feel good” phrase.  It represents all facets of a company’s community outreach and how they impact and touch their consumers and the communities in which they live and work.  From corporate philanthropy and employee volunteerism to the impact of their products and services on the environment and the marketplace, stakeholders of a large company know that a lot rides on how well they serve as corporate citizens.

The challenge for many large, multi-national corporations is finding the right project to engage and unify their employee volunteer base across time zones and cultural traditions.  At the corporate level, the individuals tasked with carrying out the company’s vision and CSR strategy search constantly for a project that involves all ages, demographics, and translates well in any city or continent.

For many years, the Foundation for Hospital Art has been partnering with the largest companies in the world to help execute their CSR strategy.  The beauty of a PaintFest® event is that employees can embrace a volunteer project that benefits the needs of their local community and also achieves corporate goals and objectives.  From birth and throughout life, hospitals, clinics, shelters, nursing homes, schools and healthcare facilities are places that everyone visits during their life.  They are places of healing and suffering.  They are places that we all need to be, for others and for family members.

The PaintFest process is easy.  The kit arrives with pre-drawn and color-coded canvases and all the art supplies.  Volunteers are recruited to paint.  The decision to paint in the office or out in the community is made by the local team.  The team of volunteers has a blast painting, knowing that the product of their efforts will adorn the blank wall of a local healthcare facility.  The team leaves energized and fulfilled; proud to represent their company in the community.

Many companies use PaintFest kits as an engagement project to introduce new employees or acquisitions to the volunteer culture.  The kits are a perfect fit for projects in support of a company-wide month of service.  Painting is scalable and can support diverse employee population sizes at various sites.

So when you are planning your next employee volunteer event, consider organizing a PaintFest event.  Connect all of your employees in a single, unifying volunteer event that is the ultimate CSR project.

Scott Feight